Much is made of the lack of attention pronunciation receives in the classroom compared to grammar and vocabulary but this is not down to a lack of material as coursebooks all include pronunciation exercises, usually cramped into a corner somewhere, and there are actually a fair amount of published resources for teachers to supplement with. ...

When a publisher looks to recruit a writer, what kind of profile are they looking for?
It depends on the publisher and what type of writer somewhat but generally, I'd say it would be someone who is an experienced EFL teacher – ideally with a deep understanding of methodology and trends, i.e. Diploma-qualified or equivalent, and ...

If you have any experience teaching our littlest of English learners, the under 6 set, you’ll know only too well that there is arguably little else more important (or more difficult) for us than classroom management. One can never be too organised or vigilant when teaching these amazing little minds. No matter how exciting the ...

What is phonics?
Synthetic phonics is a way of learning to read and write by making sound-letter connections - either breaking down a word sound-by-sound (when reading), or putting sounds together to build a word (when writing).
Why is it so important?
As a child at school in the UK, I remember learning the spelling of whole ...

We’ve all been there. In that class, with those kids- the ones who you’ve been with for a few weeks now. They’ve gotten comfortable with you, and you with them. They’re a wild bunch. Yes, you know you should have been stricter in the beginning, but how strict can you really be when they have ...

The most important people besides our YLs themselves are their parents, and this relationship is not always easy. Given the status English now has in a globalised world, many parents believe mastering English essential to have more opportunities in the future. However, some expectations may be unrealistic in terms of results, progress and the rate ...

The challenges of teaching English around the world are huge for many native and non-native EL teachers. By definition, a context where English is not widely spoken can hardly provide the practice opportunities or authenticity that is virtually unlimited in English speaking teaching contexts. The most difficult aspect of our job as teachers is trying ...

I am sure it can’t have escaped your notice that the much-heralded Oxford Dictionaries’ word of the year wasn’t actually a word at all; rather, it was an image representing the word that comes from the Japanese for picture character. That would be e(picture)+ moji (character). The emoji character ‘Face with Tears of Joy’ (
was ...

Do you ever use bookmarks in your web browser, but can only access them from one computer? Or get annoyed because you can’t remember how to find a great activity you saw on a site which would be perfect for this afternoon’s lesson? If the answer to either of those questions is ‘yes’, diigo could ...

Exam classes can be some of the most rewarding AND most frustrating teaching that you can do. Often at the same time. While learners in exam classes often have a good idea of where their strengths and weaknesses lie, perhaps from all the testing they get exposed to, there is often a strong difference between ...